I poured my morning cup of coffee and walked outside. The air was still cool from the gentle rain that had fallen during the night. I took deep breaths, savoring the freshness of it.

Charles and I had a busy day planned; but, for now, other than the sound of an occasional car in passing, it was all so very quiet. I began to talk with God. You see, I have so much to tell Him. How much I love Him, and how much I need Him every moment of every day. I pray for our friends, our families, and the leaders of our country. I ask for peace, His protection and divine intervention in a world that is ballistic and out of control. In His hands, only He can balance the universe.

A breeze began to gently blow and lift the branches of my favorite Pine tree where I stood nereby. Within my inner being I heard, “As the wind blows, so grows the tree.” I knew it to be true as the wide open acreage to the east of the house aided and strengthened the powerful force of stormy winds. With no buffer of protection, our shrubs and trees require balanced trimming during the summer months.

The Bradford Pear tree that was severely damaged in the winter’s storm of 2007 had taken another hit in recent weeks, severing it in half lengthwise. A huge stack of broken limbs had been hauled away, leaving the tree naked of its leaf clothed branches. From a frontal viewing the tree looked much the same, only the backside was visibly deformed. However, from another angle, the tree appeared to be leaning forward and looked as though it might fall from the force of the next strong wind. Once again, Charles and I discussed it’s future. Should we take it out or do what we could to save it? We decided to do the latter, and to watch and wait. Stripped of it’s branches there was no hiding its wounds this time.

Nearby stood its companion, also a Bradford Pear, which was completely unscathed. Only a years difference in their planting, which was more than fourteen years ago. Somehow, it had remained untouched.

We, too, are aligned with the perils endured by the tree. Formed from birth and patterned the same, the choices and decisions made by others and ourselves control our circumstances and our destiny as we experience the pressure of the winds of life. Stripped bare of our protective branches, God deals with our strong will, as He nurtures and grows our spirit from within. With wounds deeply hidden we can be destroyers of ourselves. Our thoughts and feelings can prevent a harvest of healing. Only God can rework and remold the pieces of our lives into a greater workmanship of beauty with a heart that holds greater love.

“Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him:
I will set him on high because he hath known my name.”
Psalm 91:14 KJV